Beer: Ratings & Reviews

Reviews by Floydster:

64 ounce growler purchased from Alacatraz at the Block of Orange today for sixteen dollars

Bartender said this was a mix between a black lager and porter, then I became interested what that tasted like

Poured into my Firestone pint glass about five hours later with an opaque black color and small 1/4 inch tan creamy head that disappeared almost immediately, not much rention and no lacing but its overall appearance was impressive

Smell is a mix between lots of roasted malt and an abudance of skunkiness, interesting combination, some light espresso aromas to go along with some faint hops, also some small amounts of cocoa

Taste was a lager when it was cold and then it transformed into a dry porter, very chewy and biscuity all the way through, and could not taste much else until it got warmer, could eventually taste some small amounts of chocolate and coffee, nicely balanced because the hop profile helped complement the strong malt flavor, like nothing I have had before as far as mixing two completely different beer styles, have not decided whether the porter or lager aspect is more dominant in this one, but I will have to say it is more of an American porter than anything, not a bad beer by any means

No carbonation in this but that might be to the growler fill, although the lid was on as tight as possible and I kept it very cold until I drank it, taste lasted a fair amount of time, not much of a body as far as thickness goes

Could finish this growler by myself but probably be pretty full afterwards, this stuff is fairly heavy but its ABV does not seem to be too high, taste does not get old and it goes well with food, particularly the pastrami sandwich I ate with it tonight

First beer I have tried from Alactraz even though I have walked by at least five different times when shopping in this area, recommended if you happen to be in the area, recommend getting a pint there and not a growler, unique beer overall

More User Reviews:

I'm hesitant to leave a review here. I visited the Alcatraz Brewery last night and I'm perplexed. When I asked for a darker beer on tap, the bartender told me it was Black Velvet. However, it could've been the Pudgy Monk Porter listed on the website (it doesn't list a supposed malt beer also served to me...).

If its not and actually the Black Velvet as I was told, they might've renamed it...hard to say.

Much like the other review, I got a lager with porter tendencies. Very smooth for a dark beer; not entirely a porter, with the coffee/chocolate notes being less prominent and only a background taste to the lager. I wouldn't say it was dry though.

I dunno. Euro Dark Lager has NO information on it, so if there are distinct differences between what a Porter and a EDL should taste like....

I've had porters too. This...this didn't strictly taste like one. I'll try to visit them again and check on if this indeed was one or not the Black Velvet or another beer not yet reviewed (The Pudgy Monk).